Easter Break Part 4: Venice

(3/29) Our train from Florence arrived in the early afternoon in Venice. On the train Lauren gave me an education in "The Party Dream", which has inspired further study since. After getting off the train we trekked through the rain to our hostel which was only a few blocks away. Thankful to be out of the rain, we checked into our hostel and dropped our stuff off. We decided that we wanted to see at least a little bit of Venice while it was still light out despite the poor weather. We walked along the eastern side of town towards Ponte Rialto, which is a large bridge with shops that stretches over the Grand Canal. We browsed the shops on the bridge and snapped a few photos, then worked our way back to our hostel. Back at the hostel we all napped for a few then got cleaned up.

For dinner I took Jade and Lauren to a place I enjoyed during my first visit to Venice. The food was as good as I remembered and the wine was tasty, which made up for the weather at least a little bit. After dinner we walked back towards our hostel and stopped at an Irish pub just around the corner. It was pretty crazy on the walk cause some of the streets were flooding so we walked on a raised platform that they had put up just in case. After the bar we called it a night.


(3/30) Since we didn't get to see much the day before we got up fairly early and headed out. Right after stepping out of our hostel I spotted my friend Darcy from Lancaster. He is a really tall Aussie so it wasn't too tricky cause his head bobbed well above most everyone elses. I chatted with him for a few minutes before we went our separate ways and we headed for breakfast. We kept it simple for breakfast with lattes and croissants all around. Our first destination for the day was Piazza San Marco, which is a massive square with a large basilica on one end. Upon arriving in the Piazza we walked around and snapped a few photos before queuing up to go in Basilica di San Marco. We walked around the inside of the Basilica and then ascended the steps up to the terrace for a better view of the surroundings. After touring the Basilica thoroughly we walked along the waterfront and stopped for lunch.

After lunch we walked around the Accademia, past the art institute, and to another waterfront. We walked along the water and found a random art show being held in a warehouse. It was free so we stopped in to check it out. The art was really good, very eclectic. The rest of the afternoon was spent working our way back to our hostel, stopping at numerous shops along the way.

Back at the hostel we hung out and snacked for a few hours. Around 7:30pm we walked out the door and back to the Piazza to meet up with a bunch of friends from Lancaster: Dennis, Kyle, Diego, Katie, Stacey, Jess, and Jess' mom. After introducing everyone we started the search for a restaurant. Dinner was quite interesting with such a big party. I think it was a bit too much for the girls, but they handled it well. After dinner I said goodbye to Lauren and Jade who were leaving very early in the morning. The rest of us went to a small jazz bar called Bacaro Jazz to get some drinks. Katie and Stacey ended up getting free t-shirts because they gave their bras to the bar's collection. We also met two girls, one who was part Russian part Canadian, and the other was Aussie. They hung out with us for the rest of the evening. We stayed at the bar until closing then headed back towards the hostel where the rest of the group was staying. On the way we stopped at an open-air bar and had a few more drinks. Kyle escorted the 2 ladies back to their hostel while the rest of us went back to crash.


(3/31) I woke up early at Jess' hostel and walked back to my hostel to check out. The city was just waking up as I strolled the narrow streets. Back at my hostel I packed my things up, checked out, and set out back across the city to Jess' hostel once again. When I got back to her hostel I booked a bed for 2 nights and then went back to sleep for another hour or so. When I woke up I staggered into the kitchen slowly regaining consciousness. We made sandwiches for lunch and talked about the plans for the day. After lunch we walked across Ponte Rialto and back to Piazza San Marco. Jess' mom, Kyle, and I hung out while Jess and Dennis went up in the bell tower for some good panoramas. About 30 minutes later they came down and we all walked to the water to catch a ferry to a nearby island called San Giorgio Maggiore.

The island was really small and the only thing we could really do on it was go inside a large church. We didn't stay on that island for too long before catching the ferry to another island called Giudecca. Katie and Stacey were staying on this island so when we got off the ferry we walked to their hostel for a short break. After we left their hostel we walked along the water and found a grocery store so we bought stuff for dinner. Groceries in hand we caught our ferry back to Piazza San Marco and walked back to our hostel for a nap. Kyle and I got up first, so I went with him to try and find a laundromat. We walked all over the city but the only place we found was already closed. Defeated from our quest we went back to the hostel and enjoyed some food and wine for the rest of the night.


(4/1) We got up fairly early and had breakfast. After breakfast we said goodbye to Kyle who was headed to Pisa. Katie, Stacey, and Diego also left that morning. In similar fashion to the day before we headed straight for Piazza San Marco to start the day. Along the way we found an Internet cafe so we stopped for a few so everyone could check their emails and such. With all of that business sorted, it was on to the waterfront to meet up with Dennis. Since we had seen most of the rest of the city we decided to walk along the water to the southeastern tip of the island. We spent the rest of the day wandering around the eastern area of town, which was really quiet and non-touristy. We ended up back near Piazza San Marco and stopped for a late lunch. After stuffing ourselves we went back to the hostel for a nap. The night consisted of snacking on whatever scraps we had and playing cards till we all passed out.


(4/2) Dennis left early that morning around 5am to head to Rome. I got up a few hours later, said goodbye, and rushed to the train station on the other side of the city. I ended up boarding my train with about 2 minutes to spare. Next stop Rome!!!


Venice Photos